


Trust

by Brainblow



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Canon, Alternate Universe - Non-Despair, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, White Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-04 23:18:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10292354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brainblow/pseuds/Brainblow
Summary: Saihara's struggles on White Day lead to a revelation and a step forward.





	

Saihara was at a loss.

There was no way he could feign ignorance about White Day. Sure, he could try and make a case that he never paid attention to it before, and Kaede never explicitly expected him to reciprocate after Valentine's, but he knew those were all excuses. After all, they spent last White Day hanging out in his room, as it had only been a few weeks since they had gotten together.

And as the Ultimate Detective, he certainly dealt with crimes of passion around March 14, and there was no point in being proud of his memory if he couldn't remember an important day in what was the most important relationship in his life right now. (God knows there wasn't much else he was proud of.)

...and, well, he forgot their one year anniversary, and she was definitely peeved, even if she brushed it off by pouting and making the most criminally adorable noises of disapproval.

So when he came to the unpleasant realization that White Day was tomorrow, he immediately started running through what his options were while cursing himself for his lack of foresight. He wasn't adept at anything food-related, so handcrafted confections were out of the question, and store-bought ones seemed too token of a gesture. As someone used to writing case reports, a heartfelt card wasn't suited for him, either.

As his choices dwindled, Saihara sighed and was thankful that it was only the morning; he still had a whole day to ponder his gift. He underwent his normal daily routine, thinking about it on his way to class.

He entered the classroom a bit later than he would like and sat down at his seat, taking in his surroundings. It was the standard scene, for the most part. Himiko, Tenko, and Angie were having their lively banter, as always (though "lively" might not describe Himiko well). Hoshi was leaning back in his chair and having a casual talk with Tojo, who unsurprisingly had perfect posture. Kaito was embarrassing Maki as his normal, boisterous self. Kaede was trying to stop Ouma from teasing a flustered and short-circuiting Ki-bo, and Gonta was similarly trying to calm down a worked up Miu as she blustered at a calm-as-ever Amami. Shirogane was absentmindedly writing in a notepad, no doubt working through some cosplay logistics, and Korekiyo was quietly reading reports on past societies by himself.

Saihara smiled to himself. There were definitely times where they all tried his patience, and he certainly would hesitate to describe his classmates as "well-adjusted," but they built a camaraderie that he had grown to appreciate. Despite all their bickering and conflict, they could all count on each other to help when it was necessary.

Saihara then figured that help was something he definitely needed right now, so he resolved to ask around after the school day ended for some advice on what to do for Kaede.

Unfortunately, their advice ended up being more...well-intentioned than useful.

Shirogane suggested surprising Kaede by dressing up as someone, before going on one of her trademark, long-winded tangents and running off when she had a flash of inspiration, leaving Saihara alone and confused.  
Tojo suggested pampering Kaede by cleaning up for her, but he knew her room was usually clean, mainly because Tojo _really_ insisted on cleaning everybody's rooms weekly.  
Tenko was too busy squeeing over the idea of Kaede and Saihara spending White Day together to be of much help.  
Himiko's suggestion was to "...you know...give her stuff she likes...or something...." (In hindsight, Saihara didn't know what he expected.)  
Miu, he didn't even bother asking, since she would either try to push her latest invention as a gift or suggest something comically lewd.  
He couldn't find Maki (she was hard to catch outside of class anyway), and Angie suggested a mutual blood sacrifice, which was starting to become her stock answer for everything.  
Gonta suggested going bug catching with Kaede, which was only fun for either of them when Gonta and his unbridled enthusiasm were around.  
Korekiyo was more interested in what Saihara ended up deciding on, stating that he preferred to observe natural human beauty without his interference.  
Ki-bo, bless his heart, could only redirect Saihara to answers on the Internet before pledging to learn more about White Day with childlike determination.  
Amami's suggestions sounded reasonable, but Saihara doubted he could make any of them work. (His face went red just thinking about them, since it was clear the intended result was...something that a boy who couldn't bring himself to kiss his girlfriend without her starting was not capable of.)  
Ryoma outright told Saihara he had no idea (which was rather refreshing), and Ouma never entered Saihara's mind once, for patently obvious reasons.

Eventually, as the sky started getting dark, Saihara stumbled across an upbeat Kaito carrying around his telescope. After greeting each other, Saihara asked what Kaito was doing. He explained that he was going to his favorite hill to prepare himself for tomorrow, since the plan was to go stargazing with Maki for White Day, and he was a bit rusty on his spotting. Saihara then explained his troubles and asked Kaito for advice, to which he scratched his head, shrugged his shoulders and said,

"I dunno, man. You know her better than anyone else, so just think about what she'd want. You're a smart guy, I trust you to come up with something."

Saihara sighed and thanked Kaito. It figured that in the end, the only person that could really make the decision was Saihara himself. Kaito gave him a toothy grin and a hard pat on the back, and they exchanged their goodbyes.

On the way back to his room, he mumbled to himself. "I'm the guy who told him he can't even think of a good White Day gift for his girlfriend, and he still says he trusts me. I don't know why, I don't even trust myself..."

Trust himself?

It then hit Saihara all at once.

* * *

A few months ago, Kaede pulled Saihara aside after class to talk about something. She was noticeably nervous, which naturally led Saihara to wonder what could get someone so normally unflappable to be this anxious.

Kaede then admitted that she was having trouble adding flourish to a piano piece she was practicing, and she wanted Saihara to come over and be her untrained ear and identify where her performance was lacking. It was way out of left field; she had made it clear before that she preferred to practice alone, and she prided herself on being perfect in her recitals. Saihara, after recovering from his slight shock, agreed to help.

When he showed up at her room, it turned out that Kaede was actually holding in her nervousness before. As Saihara settled into her room, he saw a Kaede who was more prone to stuttering her words and shaking her limbs, and was even more cautious than usual about Saihara's comfort. She was a rattled mess, and it was rather eye-opening.

Even when Kaede sat down at the bench and started warming up, she spent a long time holding her head, eyes closed and silent, before she exhaled and performed the piece. Although it was nearly as euphonious as her performances usually were, Saihara did notice notes that sounded a bit too soft or loud occasionally, along with some imperfect transitions. Kaede was also sweating and frowning for the most part, a far cry from the composed smile and confidence that were characteristic of her recitals.

After she finished, she quickly stared right at Saihara, startling him, and started going off on how she didn't think the crescendo on measure eighteen worked or how she thought the shift to B minor on measure fifty was too rough. Saihara had to hold her by the shoulders and tell her that it was still an amazing performance that only needed a few touches to be perfect. She stammered out a frantic "But..." before stopping herself and looking at Saihara's gentle smile, at which point she exhaled again, refocused, and said "Okay. I trust you, Shuuichi-kun."

She started replaying the measures Saihara thought needed some fixing, and after a few hours of experimentation and quick playthroughs, bouncing ideas against him all the while, she eventually played it to her satisfaction, at which point she leaped out of her bench and gave Saihara the most enthusiastic hug she ever gave.

"Thank you, thank you so much, Shuuichi-kun. I was so worried about not doing as well as I usually do, and I just hit a wall, and I wanted someone to help, but I don't want someone to see me like this and...I'm just so glad I trusted you, Shuuichi-kun."

"Of course, Akamatsu-san. After all, you've done so much for me that it would be rude of me not to reciprocate. I'm glad I could help."

Saihara then made his leave, content that Kaede was much happier than she was before his visit, as she kissed him goodbye and saw his blushing self off.

* * *

Saihara mused to himself just how much of a positive impact Kaede had on his life. It was because of her that he worked past his reticence and started interacting with the people that were his good friends today. It was because of her that he doubted himself less and actually started becoming someone he could be proud of. And it was because of her that he felt valued as a person, something he had never felt for long before. All because she trusted in him, and his ability to improve, more than he ever thought he deserved.

At its core, his relationship with Kaede was all about trust. Trust in each other and trust in themselves. Kaede almost always exuded trust in herself and her abilities, and with her help Saihara also eventually found that trust in himself. She showed her trust in him by allowing him to see her at her least confident and most vulnerable a few months ago, and Saihara figured that for White Day, he would show his trust in her by doing something he never thought he'd do, something he could only ever do with her.

When White Day rolled around, Saihara packed his gift into his bag before heading out. It was a black hairclip in the shape of four connected notes (four sixteenth notes beamed together, as Kaede would describe it) that Saihara bought after having his revelation last night. (It wasn't the entire gift, of course, but Saihara figured that Kaede should at least have something physical to remember the day by.) After the day's classes, Saihara brought Kaede to a quiet spot on the campus and, with a slight blush, presented the gift to her. She accepted and put the hairclip on immediately, thanking Saihara for giving the gift and remembering the day. (He was relieved.) He then straightened up, cleared his throat, and told her that there was one more thing he'd like to give her, as a sign of trust.

His pervasive inner voice started running rampant. It was pathetic that this was even a big deal for him, that normal people don't have this problem, and that if he was a better person he wouldn't have this reservation in the first place. But he quickly silenced his doubts. That might all be true, but he was trying to be a better person, to be a better person for himself and for her, and this was the first step in doing that.

And it was on that White Day that Shuuichi Saihara took initiative for the first time and kissed Kaede Akamatsu.

**Author's Note:**

> Gotta strike while that White Day iron is hot
> 
> A week ago I went "isn't White Day in a week or something" and just kinda sat down and wrote this. So hey, I have something that's not smut to my name now. Whatever that's worth.
> 
> Also part of me wishes there was an Ultimate Mathematician so I could work in the fact that White Day is always Pi Day, too.


End file.
